


First Love Blooming

by ReverieWithMe



Category: Stranger Things (TV 2016)
Genre: Cute Mike Wheeler, Eleven | Jane Hopper & Jim "Chief" Hopper Parent-Child Relationship, Eleven | Jane Hopper Deserves Happiness, Eleven | Jane Hopper and Mike Wheeler in Love, F/M, First Love, Good Parent Jim "Chief" Hopper, Growing Up, Happy Eleven | Jane Hopper, Jim "Chief" Hopper Adopts Eleven | Jane Hopper, Protective Jim "Chief" Hopper, Protective Mike Wheeler, Protective Parent Jim "Chief" Hopper, Romantic Fluff, Soft Mike Wheeler, Stranger Things (TV 2016) References, Teenagers, Tooth-Rotting Fluff
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-12
Updated: 2019-05-12
Packaged: 2020-03-01 10:40:28
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,149
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18798703
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ReverieWithMe/pseuds/ReverieWithMe
Summary: Jim Hopper knew that his adopted daughter, Eleven, was growing up; after all it was only a matter of time, but he hadn’t realised just how quick it was happening...Mike and Eleven’s romantic relationship is becoming more and more obvious to Hopper, and he doesn’t think that Eleven is ready to have a boyfriend just yet.





	1. Blossoming love

**Author's Note:**

> hi! thank you for deciding to read my first ever fan-fiction (ahhh!)  
> after reading a whole lot of stranger things fan-fiction, i realised that i wanted to try my hand at writing some!
> 
> hopefully you like it! i’m gonna try to post a new chapter to this story at least once a week so stay tuned <3
> 
> \- ReverieWithMe
> 
> please leave me comments and give me any feedback! :)
> 
> —————

Jim Hopper knew that his adopted daughter, Eleven, was growing up; after all it was only a matter of time, but he hadn’t realised just how quick it was happening.

The young girl had become noticeably more like her teenage peers and didn’t seem to terribly stick out of the crowd as she once did. This was due to the fact that she had officially been going to school for a solid few months, which was probably supposed to be of some comfort to Hopper as it showed that she was beginning to fit in - yet alarm bells were ringing obnoxiously in his mind.

He wasn’t ready to lose his wonderful little girl just yet, he had barely adjusted to the fact that he had the chance to have a daughter again. After losing his daughter, Sara, he didn’t think he’d be able to be a father again but as if by magic Eleven seemed to have dropped into his life when he needed it most. 

He had noticed how she had started to swipe bubblegum pink lipgloss onto her lips before heading to school or before hanging out with her group of slight misfit friends and would occasionally even powder her pretty little face with something she called “blusher” when heading out of the door. This was innocent enough to Hopper, he knew that doing makeup gave her a strange but much needed sort of bonding time with Nancy Wheeler and it allowed her to be like the other girls at school - but things were even worse than that...

Hopper had noticed that Eleven was spending an increasingly long amount of time with one particular kid in her misfit group: Mike Wheeler.  
The kid was nice enough, he had admitted to himself, and he knew that Mike always seemed to take good care of Eleven; always being patient enough to explain things to her and constantly checking that she was ok. In fact, he saw how visibly upset Mike was when he found out that Hopper had hidden Eleven away for so long - which proved to Hopper that he really did care. But even still, Hopper’s “protective dad instincts” bombarded his mind with flashing lights and sirens every time the pair grew too close. 

Hopper could also see that Eleven already cared deeply about that Mike kid too, seeing as she couldn’t seem to stop herself talking about him 24/7; from the moment that Hopper took Eleven into his care. It was sweet enough, watching her face light up with excitement every time she spoke about him, but still Hopper didn’t like the thought of his daughter having a crush already so he tried to push it to the side and didn’t think about it too much. Never did he expect much to come out of Eleven’s first little crush. It was only when he noticed that Mike seemed to be equally infatuated that he got a little worried. 

When Hopper would be sat in his truck outside of school, waiting to pick up Eleven, he noticed how the pair of teens strode so close together that their nimble bodies would amusingly bump into each-other and their small hands seemed to lightly brush with every shuffled step. He also noticed how when Eleven would finally say goodbye to Mike, Mike would occasionally lean down daringly close and whisper something in her ear that would make both her and Mike’s cheeks flush a vibrant shade of pink and leave them both smiling with cheesy grins.  
Sometimes they’d even just simply stand and gaze heart-eyed at each other for a time that Hopper thought was suspicious or unnecessary and so he would just hit the blaring horn on his car and break up the lover’s fiasco. 

On one occasion, Hopper watched as Mike leaned his tall frame down towards his small daughter; which made Hopper tense a little, but to his surprise Mike softly produced a soft white flower from his side and gently tucked Eleven’s soft curly brown hair behind her ear and carefully placed the flower there. Hopper was relieved that Mike hadn’t made too much of an advance but was equally shocked as to the fact that he had given Eleven the dainty yet heart-warming flower. To Hopper’s surprise (and seemingly Mike’s surprise too), Eleven launched herself at Mike with a little too much force - with pure joy and excitement, wrapping her arms around him in an embrace, making Mike almost topple over, which made Hopper chuckle a little. Mike was tense for a moment until his body noticeably relaxed and he wrapped his long arms around Eleven’s body. The pair of teens stood their for a few seconds, until Eleven gently broke away and looked up to Mike with a wide grin of pure happiness; her body still lightly pressing against Mike’s whilst her gaze met his eye. Hopper decided that he had finally had enough of the teen-lover situation in front of him and loudly honk his horn twice to snap the two back into reality. It clearly worked, as Eleven and Mike quickly jumped away from each other, obviously not realising that Hopper had been watching them the whole time. As she did every day, Eleven rushed herself over to the chief’s truck and jumped in, leaving a flustered Mike on the pavement lightly holding the back of his neck in embarrassment and waving off Eleven and Chief.  
At the time, Hopper asked Eleven what that little display of affection was all about, but of course his stubborn daughter didn’t give up any details and just replied with “Oh, nothing” whilst she distractedly picked the little, white flower from her wild curly hair and twirled it between her fingers with a love-struck smile on her face that made the chief’s heart melt with happiness but that made his mind teem with curiosity.

As time grew, it became harder for Hopper to try and ignore Eleven’s increasingly obvious connection with Mike when it was so plainly obvious. On the rare chance that Eleven was allowed to invite a friend over to the cabin, she would always insist desperately on choosing Mike. Even if Hopper tried his best to suggest someone else, such as that Max kid; who seemed nice enough, or Dustin; who seemed to be polite and caring - Eleven was adamant that she wanted to hang out with Mike. Of course, Eleven would flutter her long lashes and show her deep brown puppy-dog eyes to Hopper that made his heart swoon and so he’d usually give in to her, and so Eleven was always allowed to invite Mike in the end. 

When Mike and Eleven would hang out, the golden flying sparks between them was blatant. Hopper never let them in Eleven’s room alone unless the door was swung wide open - to avoid any “teenage behaviour” from occurring, but still the teens seemed too close for his comfort. Eleven and Mike would often watch movies together on the TV in the living room, which made Hopper feel better because he could keep an eye on them whilst reading the Hawkins Post newspaper by glancing up every once in a while, but even still it felt a bit odd to be spying on them. He had never seen his little girl look at someone with the pure joy and mesmerisation as she had when she looked at Mike. She seemed to hang onto every last word he said as if it were fact and Mike clearly loved it. Sometimes when they were watching a movie, he noticed that the teens would whisper to each other and giggle amongst themselves or sometimes he even saw that Eleven would discreetly be resting her head on the edge of Mike’s shoulder. The sight was pretty adorable, but it raised his suspicions further to the fact that Eleven and Mike’s relationship could have romantic implications that he wasn’t sure that Eleven could be ready for. Once, Hopper even swore that he saw Mike and Eleven gently holding hands for a moment or two whilst they watched a movie, though he couldn’t be sure since their hands were hidden beneath the woollen, grey blanket. Hopper coughed protectively in the hopes that they would move apart but instead the smart-ass kid Mike simply asked “Are you alright sir? You don’t need a glass of water do you?” to which Hopper annoyedly replied “I’m sure I’ll be fine.” and decided to stand down his guard. After that, Mike seemed to let go of Eleven’s hand and playfully grabbed the huge pink bowl of sugary popcorn from Eleven’s lap and teasingly held it away from her whilst she huffed slightly and giggled. Hopper laughed in response to when Eleven used her powers to levitate the bowl away from Mike’s hands and floated it above him until it was safely onto her lap. She let out a satisfied hum as she took a handful of popcorn and crunched on it, after wiping the drops of blood away from her nose. Of course, Mike was in awe of Eleven using her powers so effortlessly and so their small moment of friendly teasing was replaced with a slight longing gaze between them of pure happiness and attraction.

All of these little daily occurrences began to add up in Hopper’s mind as he realised that his daughter was growing up and perhaps even falling in love - but nothing could’ve prepared his fatherly instincts for what he saw happen between the seemingly love-stricken pair one day...


	2. The Growing Intimacy Of Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mike and Eleven are fluffy and hella cute as their intimacies develop slightly when hanging out together, unbeknownst to Hopper - who is shook (oops)
> 
> ——————

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoy this chapter! It is probably kinda cliche but I love protective Hopper and cutesy Mileven! 
> 
> Mike and Eleven adorable, MY HEART IS BURSTING <3
> 
> Also I’m in the midst of exams and I’m hella stressed, I’ll try to keep the updates to this fanfic regular though because I love writing it :)
> 
> ——————

Hopper was still pretty much in denial about his innocent daughter possibly having an interest in a certain boy - yes Mike was seemingly harmless and seemed to treat Eleven well but Hopper knew that she’s just too young! 

That evening, Hopper had to stay back late at work and finish up some urgent business, leaving Eleven home alone to take care of herself for a short while. It wasn’t too bad for her to be home alone though, she had Mike to talk to through her new walkie-talkie that she had convinced Hopper to purchase and she had a stack-load of eggos for herself to enjoy. Eleven was slumped lazily on her bed, bored out of her mind, it felt like she had watched every tv soap, eaten every darn eggo and now she was just left with nothing. That’s when a devious idea popped into her head. What if she invited Mike over? Just for a short hour! She knew that Hopper would be at least an hour and a half getting home, and what he didn’t know wouldn’t kill him! Eleven had dearly missed spending time with Mike when Hopper kept her confined to the cabin for most of last year; so in her mind she was simply making up lost time! So that’s when she did it, she picked up the hefty walkie-talkie and excitedly invited Mike over. Of course Mike said yes and sprinted out of his house and excitedly cycled as fast as he could through the shadowy, tall woods and straight to Eleven. 

When Mike arrived, he did the special knock of the heavy wooden door that he had been taught by Hopper. Eleven had restlessly been waiting to greet him and so she swung open the door with delight and squealed “You really came!” and quickly hurried him inside. The two spent the next half an hour deciding what to do, but they couldn’t make their mind up. Neither of them were in the mood to play a board game and there really was nothing of use on the TV. Usually, Mike would bring a movie over for them to watch but he had left the house in such an frantic rush that he had completely forgotten. The two eventually stumbled their way to Eleven’s princess-pink bedroom, where she flopped frustratedly onto the bed - clearly upset that she couldn’t think of something interesting to do. Mike was unsure if he should join her but decided warily to lay down next to her. The two lay in silence for a moment before Mike suddenly said “Hey don’t worry, this is still fun, you know”, to which Eleven looked confused. Mike continued to explain by saying “We don’t often get time alone, with Hopper prying and all, and honestly I love to spend time with you no matter what we are doing” and gave her a small but sincere smile. Her once deflated and upset personality lit up with happiness as her cheeks blushed a unmistakable bright pink colour. Eleven’s hands that were originally close by her side slowly stretched out until she carefully found Mike’s hand, they both instinctively intertwined their fingers and gave each other a warm, sincere smile. 

The two laid there for a moment or two; Mike longingly staring at Eleven’s beauty: her adorable nose, her sparkling eyes, her perfect smile and her wild spiralling hair and Eleven becoming slightly hypnotised by Mike’s perfect freckles, wonderful dark hair and kind eyes. 

“Mike will you read to me?” Eleven finally said, breaking the silence with her soft voice. “Sure” Mike replied, his heart beating fast with adoration as he slowly picked a book from Eleven’s limited collection. They both leaned back against the headboard of Eleven’s wooden bed and so Mike began to read. Eleven closed her eyes as she listened to Mike’s flowing words spiralling through ears. His voice was so gentle and caring as he read, taking the time to explain some of the more difficult words as best as he could, whilst Eleven made mental notes of the new vocabulary that she was learning. However, Mike suddenly stopped reading, and so Eleven was confused and opened her eyes to see why. 

There Mike was, gazing slightly at Eleven,  
a small smile twitching on his face and his face burning with the realisation that Eleven had caught him daydreaming about her all of a sudden. Mike was clearly flustered and choked a little on his words and apologised for stopping, and went to find his place in the book again when Eleven said “Why did you stop?” with curiosity. Mike replied softly “because... god, you looked so beautiful and peaceful, you just took my breath away.”, refraining from making eye contact with Eleven in embarrassment - shocked at himself for saying his feelings out loud.  
“Oh ok” Eleven replied and after a moment said, “I think you are beautiful too, Mike”. 

Mike let out a little chuckle finally making eye contact with Eleven again, noticing that she was significantly closer than before. “People usually say that boys are handsome rather than beautiful” Mike explained, his speech becoming quieter as the two teens began to lean closer together in unbearable anticipation. Their faces were only a few inches apart when Eleven softly stated “handsome, very handsome” and brushed her lips carefully against Mike’s. The kiss was brief but perfect and both of their hearts were beating so wildly out of their chest that they could each other’s faint thumping heart beat in the room. Their foreheads were still touching, when Eleven carefully asked “Mike... will you be my boyfriend?”. She broke eye contact for a second with nervousness but Mike tilted her chin upwards and said quietly “Of course, are you kidding? Its... its always been you I swear El, I’d love to be your boyfriend, I’ve been wanting to ask for ages... to make it official, you know!”.  
Mike carefully planted a kiss on Eleven’s lips once more and moved away from her, smiling with content. “Mike... Can we... Do that again?” Eleven asked. Mike’s eyes widened at the fact that Eleven would want to kiss him again... they had already kissed twice tonight! However, then his features softened and he leaned forward to kiss her again, more confidently this time. 

Eleven gently moved as close as possible towards Mike’s slender body as they carefully yet passionately made out. Mike began to gently kiss her neck and her jaw, causing Eleven to giggle slightly and lay flat on the pink bed where she entangled her hands in Mike’s soft hair whilst Mike continued to teasingly attack her with ticklish kisses across her neck and the room was filled with pure laughter and light. Before he knew it, Mike’s green pullover sweater was thrown haphazardly onto the floor and the teens kissed again, only slowing down for a moment to catch their breath when Mike quietly uttered “I love you, El”. Eleven quickly looked up at his rosy face, and saw the initial shock but sincerity in his expression and sat up slightly and replied with a simple “I love you too, Mike”, her face beaming with happiness. 

The two were so caught up in their little pure moment that they barely heard the front door close, it was only when Hopper’s loud yet caring voice boomed across the house saying “Hey kid, I’m home and I brought some unhealthy junk so we can get fat together!” that they realised. The two teens suddenly snapped out of their moment in shock and Eleven jumped up in a panic, accidentally knocking her head against Mike’s and shouting “ow!” instinctually.  
“Shit!” Mike whispered as he moved to the side slightly and leant down to check if she was ok, more  
worried about her rather than being caught by Hopper. Meanwhile footsteps grew closer to the room and Hopper swung open the bedroom door. “Hey kid are you o-“ Hopper began before realising what was happening. 

That Wheeler kid was here... practically on top of his daughter... on her bed... home alone... the kid’s hands were clutching her head softly and looking at a red bump as if he were some goddamn doctor?  
Hopper assessed the situation further, he noticed that Mike’s jumper was inside out and sprawled wildly on the floor and how Eleven was biting her lip with concern and anticipation. He stared at their slightly swollen lips and the deer-in-headlights look they were both giving him. Then he spotted a small, but still visible hickey that was on Eleven’s neck and sighed. “Oh jesus...” Hopper started, his quiet disappointment clear to Eleven, but suddenly his tone switched as he looked straight at Mike. “What the HELL is going on here?” Hopper questioned protectively, a little more aggressively than he had expected. “Look it’s not what it looks like I swear” Mike tried to reason, but it was pretty clear that he had just been pawing the Chief’s daughter so he stopped, not knowing what else to say. Mike awkwardly let go of Eleven’s head and they both sat there, their faces burning in embarrassment. 

“Come on kid, you’ve got some GODDAN explaining to do - the BOTH of you do.” Hopper stated strongly as his protective parent instincts kicked in and faced away from the situation for a moment, “We have all damn night.”


End file.
